The Diamondbacks, who lead the National League West with a 44-33 record, have won four games in a row.

Now they get back Miller, a 27-year-old former first-round pick who was drafted 19th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2009. He went 15-9 with a 3.06 ERA in 2013, finishing third in the Rookie of the Year voting.

Since then, however, Miller has been traded twice — by the Cardinals to the Atlanta Braves and then to Arizona before the start of the 2016 season.

So far, the Diamondbacks haven’t gotten much return on their investment. Miller went 3-12 with a 6.15 ERA in 2016 and 2-2 with a 4.09 ERA before getting hurt a year ago, lasting just four starts.

“I definitely have some things to prove over here Frank Ragnow Color Rush Jersey ,” Miller, an All-Star with Atlanta in 2015, told azcentral.com. “I feel I was throwing pretty well last year. Unfortunately, I got hurt.”

Monday represents a fresh start for Miller, who made four starts in extended spring training earlier this year followed by four minor-league rehab appearances.

“Command was the last thing to come back. But I feel it is there now. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t feel I was ready to pitch.”

Straily, who will be Miller’s counterpart on Monday, faced Arizona earlier this year, allowing one run in 4 1/3 innings of a 6-1 loss to the Diamondbacks on June 3.

In Straily’s most recent start, he lasted just 1 1/3 innings before he was ejected for the first time in his career Saquon Barkley Jersey Giants , exiting during a 6-3 loss to the San Francisco Giants.

Straily was tossed out after he hit Giants star catcher Buster Posey with a pitch.

“I don’t know,” Posey said when asked by the media if the hit-by-pitch was intentional. “It sure seemed that way.”

Of much bigger concern for the Marlins (31-47) is the fact that they have lost their past five games when Straily starts. Straily has zero quality starts during that span.

The Marlins, who are in last place in the NL East, beat the Colorado Rockies 8-5 on Sunday for their second straight win.

Miami finished 5-4 on its road trip to the Baltimore Orioles, San Francisco Giants and Colorado, taking two of the three series. It is Miami’s first winning road trip of the year.

The Marlins are 11-11 in June, which has already made this their best month of the season. And they have more road wins (17-26) than home victories (14-21).

Meanwhile, Arizona has a winning record at home (23-16) and on the road (21-17). They are 16-6 in June after a poor May (8-19). The Diamondbacks are also 3-0 against the Marlins.

Hot Miami hitters include left fielder Derek Dietrich, who was 4-for-5 on Sunday to raise his batting average to .302, and catcher J.T. Realmuto, who went 1-for-3 and is batting .308.

Rajon Rondo officially joined the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday with a clear idea about his future with LeBron James.

”We’re expected to win now,” Rondo said.

Rondo agreed to a one-year deal worth $9 million earlier this week to suit up alongside James, whose signing hasn’t yet been announced by the Lakers.

The veteran point guard is eager to be a mentor to Lonzo Ball, and he sees a chance for immediate success with the thoroughly revamped club. The Lakers haven’t made the playoffs for a franchise-record five consecutive seasons, but Rondo believes they’ll make immediate strides back toward contention for a 17th NBA championship.

”You put any group of players around LeBron James, as he has done (eight) straight times, he went to the finals,” Rondo said. ”So my expectations are the exact same thing. Even with the Warriors adding (DeMarcus Cousins) and the Rockets being who they are, I think we fit right up there in the mix. It is early, obviously Denard Span Seattle Mariners Jersey , and I’m not promising anything, but at the end of the day, I expect to win. Nothing else.”

Rondo is a familiar figure to Lakers fans, and not necessarily in a good way. He played a major role for the Celtics when they met the Lakers in the NBA Finals, winning a ring with Boston in 2008 and losing to LA in 2010.

Seeing Rondo on the other side of that enduring NBA rivalry won’t be as weird to Rondo as it might be to some Lakers fans.

”Does it feel strange? Um, no,” Rondo said. ”My battles with the Lakers were over a decade ago, and none of the players I was battling with are on the same roster.”

The 32-year-old Rondo expressed no concerns about playing with Ball, the precocious passer chosen by the Lakers with the second overall pick in last year’s draft. Ball will be sidelined for most of the summer with a torn meniscus in his left knee, but Rondo is eager to work on their chemistry in the fall.

Rondo sees the Lakers’ potential surplus of ball-handlers as an advantage. He isn’t worried about finding roles for everyone in coach Luke Walton’s up-tempo offense, which is designed to create plenty of offensive chances for every player.

”It will be very versatile, and I don’t think you’ll be able to scout and stick to one game plan as far as being able to stop a certain player,” Rondo said. ”I think guys like LeBron or myself, I haven’t played with a lot of guys that make plays for me. So it’s going to be exciting to be able to just get up, get a couple of easy looks, be able to push the pace in the open court.”

The Lakers also announced the re-signing of guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who got a one-year deal worth $12 million to provide a perimeter shooting threat to an offense that could still use more outside shooters.

The Lakers haven’t yet announced the acquisitions of James or veterans Lance Stephenson and JaVale McGee during a thorough makeover following the worst half-decade in franchise history.

You can post new topics in this forum.
You can reply to topics in this forum.
You can delete your posts in this forum.
You can edit your posts in this forum.
You cannot create polls in this forum.
You can vote in polls in this forum.